“Oh babe, this is so good. Hey! Don’t eat all the broth! That’s mine.” My husband. He’s usually really good about sharing. “Oh. This is really good.” Until it comes to soup. He LOVES a good soup. And he wants it all for himself.

I’ve said it here before. My man is a soup aficionado. And if you can spell aficionado without having to hit dictionary.com, you are one swell spelling bee winner, because I can’t. But back to the soup…

Not only does the slow cooker create a broth for this soup that tastes flavorful and ultimately craveable, the perfumed scent of sausage, onion, celery and garlic that wafts from the kitchen as it cooks will have you wishing you could give that lid on the slow cooker just a crack to dip a spoon in for juuuuuust a bite for taste testing. Or better yet, dip in a big old slice of sourdough. Fancy that. We’re a family of dippers.

About the Recipe

Veggies and broth are the supreme staple for a simple soup like this. What I like about that fact, besides that it’s so easy to pull together, is the clean flavor it imparts. This is one of those soups you can plan to make later on in the weekly meal planning because this list of fresh ingredients hold their goodness longer, and the whole batch is flavored with dried herbs you can keep handy in the cupboard.

But to get that full dose of flavor, I don’t use just any any dried herb.

When McCormick asked me to try their new line of Herb Grinders I was intrigued. They describe the herb grinders as a whole new flavor innovation designed to deliver more aroma and more taste. Each grinder contains dried herbs with larger cuts of leaves you can grind when ready to use, keeping the herbs fresher, longer. Grinding fresh also makes the herbs finer and smaller in texture. What I liked about that for this soup is because I used the basil, oregano and parsley herb grinders, the finer ground herbs blended seamlessly into the broth, so that with each bite, no one herb overpowered the other.

The stock is simple but deep thanks to the addition of tomatoes to the chicken broth and the soffrito of veggies (what Italians call the combination of onion, celery and carrots) as well as a bit of sherry to tenderize and flavor the sausage when cooking. If you don’t have sherry on hand, use a white wine you’d be willing to drink instead.

I’ve made this soup in my regular slow cooker before, but now that I have my Instant Pot, I’ll be saving my old slow cooker to use just for bigger batch cooking. What is special about the Instant Pot is it has 7 functions in one pot. You can use it as a slow cooker, a pressure cooker, a yogurt maker and so much more.

But the thing I LOVE about this appliance is its function to sauté meats, chicken, veggies, and more directly in the insert. No need to dirty another pan or pot. It makes each slow cooker recipe a true one-pot meal and perfect for soups like this one.

I used lacinato kale, or dinosaur kale, in this soup for a bit more bulk, and freshness, added at the end with the tortellini. Spinach, swiss chard or arugula could be used instead.

I like a 3-cheese tortellini in my soup but you could use a spinach and cheese or other flavor you prefer. When adding your fresh tortellini, be mindful not to overcook them. Fresh tortellini cooks up quickly, and the little bundles of cheesy pasta bulk up more the longer they sit in the broth. If you let them cook too long, there’s a greater tendency for them to break down. If you use dried tortellini in your soup, allow for at least 30 minutes extra cooking time.

Serve with crusty sourdough bread or even soft potato rolls. Because like my husband says, brothy soup like this is made for dipping.

Preheat a large skillet or the insert on medium high or of a slow cooker with a browning function such as the Instant Pot on high. Add the sausage and cook stirring occasionally until browned. Add the onion and celery and cook for 3-4 minutes then stir in the minced garlic, season with the kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add the sherry or white wine and scrape up any fond or bits on the bottom of the pan, cooking until it evaporates.

If cooking in a skillet, transfer the sausage and vegetables to the insert of the slow cooker. Add the carrots, diced tomatoes, and chicken broth. Grind in the basil, oregano and parsley and stir. Cover with the lid and set the cooker to low and cook for 3 hours.

Add the tortellini and the kale to the slow cooker and cook for 30 minutes.

Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

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Thanks for stopping by, and here’s to getting into the kitchen to cook something good.

This post was in partnership with McCormick. To learn more about the new McCormick Herb Grinders and some simple recipes to put them to use, click here!

As always, thank you for reading and for supporting companies I partner with, which allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you. All opinions are always my own.

This is one seriously stunning soup. I could stare longingly at this all day long. I don’t have an Instant Pot yet. I see everyone raving about them. So I’ll have to invest in one soon. I love my slow cookers, and my pressure cooker, so I’m sure I’d love the Instant Pot too.

I need to try these McCormick grinders asap. I love their spices. My whole family knows it’s the only one to buy if they run errands for me while I’m cooking for the blog. No other brand will do.

We love a good soup to slurp on during the cooler months. My kids always want more broth than the rest, so I know they would love this one. And those grinders are so cool. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for them in our stores.

Skipped the slow cooker and made this soup on the stove the other night. Loved it! Barely had any left for lunch the next day – shared the little I had with coworkers and they immediately asked for the recipe. Thinking I’ll plan a party soon and serve this soup with a crusty bread and light dessert. Thank you for sharing!

Love Love Love this soup , but I am a newbie to Instant Pot… on October 16, 2016 you said to use the “slow cooker” function and February 7, 2017 you said to use the “soup” function. lol, I need direction ! thank you

This is the best soup I’ve ever made! Didn’t have time for the slow cooker, so I winged it and made it on the stove top. My only complaint – I didn’t double or triple the recipe. My family ate every last drop. i could eat it every day! Thinking of planning a dinner party with this as the main course.

This was really really good! For instant pot this is what I did:
Use all the ingredients as listed. Brown the sausage and when about 1/2 done add the onions then add the carrots and celery. When it is brown and the veggies soft add the garlic and herbs salt and pepper. Add the tomatoes and a little of the broth. Scrape the brown bits off the bottom. Add the rest of the broth. Put IP on manual 8 mins. Do quick release. When you can open add the tortellini. Put IP on manual 2 mins. Do quick release. Add spinach and when wilted, serve.

I did the same thing (after all ingredients were added, did Instant Pot High Pressure Manual for 8 minutes), except I boiled the water and did the tortellini separately as it was quick releasing. By the time it was done, torts were cooked in a pot (only takes 2-3 min or whatever package says) and then put them and the kale inside the instant pot while it was on warm and while I finished the bread for serving.